[Dave at Pelican Parts]

Originally posted by bostonmeche ... I really do want to do a 3.2 conversion. I was wondering if anyone here has read the "HOW TO COVERT A 914.." by George Hussey.

Never read it.

Note that the 3.2 requires some care to fit in a 914. Either you need the "adaptor flywheel" to fit the engine to the 914's gearbox (and one that has the teeth for the DME's crank position sensor if you're keeping the injection), or you need to convert a later 915 gearbox to work in a 914.

1. Do I need a front oil cooler?

Yes, no, maybe. I would upgrade that to a "probably" with a 3.2 motor. JP doesn't have one with his 2.7 RS-spec motor, but some people have reported that they really do need a front cooler... Best way is to try it and see, and don't make any design choices that will prevent you from adding the cooler if you do need it.

2. Should I shell out $800 for a fender mount oil tank or should I do some sort of remote mount dry sump system? Benefits?

Should you? Well, you should buy lots of parts from Pelican!

The stock system fits. You drill the holes correctly, bolt everything up, and there it is. You usually wind up having to get some oil lines made with $$$ fittings (AN-to-metric isn't real cheap), and there are details to work out like the filler neck and so on, but it all fits as if it were designed to. Because it was.

The aftermarket dry-sump setups give you much more flexibility about where to mount the tank--put it in the battery location, in the rear trunk, in the front trunk, and so on. They generally hold quite a bit more oil than the stocker as well. They tend to be fairly expensive if you get one that actually works correctly--has baffles to keep the oil from sloshing, de-aerates the oil, etc.

The downside of the aftermarket ones is that you have to make the decisions about plumbing, location, mounting, and so on.

I personally feel that the stock tank is better for a street car.

3. What are the things I should know but don't before I start the project.

That is always the question, isn't it? In some ways, that's a bit like asking someone to predict all of the unpredictable things that could happen during a project... I do know that these things always take much longer and cost much more than you think they will.

--DD